Allotment - the Where, When, Why and How - What is allotment forestry?

Well, it's not about planting trees on you allotment (which is often against the rules, so check your tenancy agreement carefully) rather It's a community project working with gardeners to increase the use of local woodland products in the garden and allotment.

Traditionally Britain's gardeners used locally grown wood for garden purposes ranging from the withy hurdle through to the trug, but today most people find it easier to buy a bamboo cane from a garden centre than a locally grown hazel twig to support their runner beans. This is a great shame, as Britain's woodlands can (and until recently did) provide many products for the garden that are currently imported from places where both forests, wildlife and forest peoples are threatened. By using home-grown wood products, we - as gardeners - can help create new rural jobs, protect British woodland wildlife, at the same time as reducing damage to the rainforests.

Many gardeners are women and there is often a sense that women are not trained or given the tools to undertake garden DIY tasks, this is a shame because by using green wood, which is wood taken straight from the tree or hedge, such projects become much easier and the tools needed are simpler. As an example, consider wattle work:

Hazel is the most commonly used wattle-work species. Willow is also common but must not be used where any thing is backfilled with soil as it might take root and grow.

Use a sledgehammer to sink two posts to a depth of 90cm. Space them 2.4m apart along the length to be wattled. Fix twine so as to give a straight line between the posts.

Evenly space 9 stakes along the straight line and sink to a depth of 90cm - then remove the twine. Select the thickest hazel rod and weave it in and out around the stakes. Press it firmly down to the ground. Now choose the next thickest and position it so that its thick end is where the thin end of the previous rod is. Weave the rod in and out around the stakes but on the opposite side of the stake from the previous stake. Continue weaving until either the last two rods are left or you are with in 3cm of the height desired. It is important that each rod is pressed firmly down onto the previous rod.

Find out more at: http://www.allotmentforestry.com/

allotment forestry photograph author's own